The present invention relates to a testing system and a method for telephone number verification/identification in a local telephony network, and in particular, to a testing system and method which is substantially automatic and yet which is also flexible and reliable, and which permits verification and/or identification of telephone numbers while updating database information or while maintaining the database for local telephony network.
Telephone number verification and/or identification is a well known process. Currently available equipment relies upon the caller identification process. This process is a service according to which a telephone central office switch sends digital information about the incoming telephone call to the party being called. This digital information includes the telephone number of the party originating the telephone call. The caller identification testing and transmitting feature is provided by most, but not all, telephone central office switches. Telephone products with caller identification require special hardware, firmware and software to adapt the products to the relevant physical and data-link layers. ISDN lines and interfaces are equipped with this capability, for example.
In order to perform the verification and/or identification for updating or maintaining the database, for example, special test equipment must be connected parallel to the tested telephone line, which is usually a "live" or fully connected and functioning, telephone line. Telephone number verification/identification by using the caller identification feature usually involves initiating a telephone call from the tested line, if possible, to a known and dedicated telephone and telephone line. The special test equipment then intercepts the digital information, including the telephone number of the tested line.
Unfortunately, this method has a number of limitations. For example, the testing equipment cannot initiate a telephone call from the tested telephone line if the tested line is busy. Similarly, the testing process cannot be performed if the user is dialing the telephone or otherwise interfering with the process. For telephone lines which only permit incoming telephone calls, no telephone call can be initiated in order to perform the test. The special test equipment cannot initiate a telephone call while being connected to the lines which are connected to non-direct lines (ISDN and PCM lines, for example). In addition, some telephone central office switches do not have the caller identification feature which enables the process to be performed.
Even when the caller identification process can be performed for testing of the telephone line, this process has the drawback of requiring at least seven to eight seconds to perform, which is the combination of the time required to dial the telephone number on the tested line and to receive the caller identification information at the party receiving the telephone call.
A preferable method and testing system for automatic telephone verification and/or identification would use standard features of any digital or analog telecommunications switch, and would not have the drawbacks of the known caller identification process. Unfortunately, such a testing system and method are not currently available.
Therefore, there is an unmet need for, and it would be highly useful to have, a testing system and a method for performing telephone verification and/or identification with standard features of any digital telecommunications switch, which does not have the limitations of the currently known process, and which is reliable and efficient.